Friends of Music - First Congregational Church (Saginaw)

Friends of Music support the musical happenings of First Congregational Church (Saginaw, MI). Members are music enthusiasts from the congregation and/or community at large -- members are aficionados of the pipe organ, choral music, chamber music, and the like. The church, which dates to 1868, is acoustically superb. The congregation is affiliated with the United Church of Christ and has recognized excellence and eclecticism in its musical offerings since the 1800’s.

Monday, February 9, 2015

First Congregational Church, 403 S. Jefferson Avenue,announces its Lenten noonday recital
series that features regional organists, a flute player, and a prominent parochial
middle school choir.Free and open to
the public, each concert listed below takes place in the church sanctuary and
lasts thirty minutes.

Robert Hart – Flute

Friday, February 20, 2015 |
12:15 p.m.

Nicholas Schmelter – Organ

Friday, February 27, 2015 |
12:15 p.m.

Dr. Carl Angelo – Organ

Friday, March 6, 2015 | 12:15
p.m.

Dr. Steven Egler – Organ

Friday, March 13, 2015 | 12:15
p.m.

James Gladstone – Organ

Friday, March 20, 2015 | 12:15
p.m.

The Choir of St. Lorenz Middle
School

Friday, March 27, 2015 | 12:15
p.m.

One week after the final noonday recital, on Good Friday,
April 3, at 7:00 p.m., the Exultate Deo Chamber Choir will perform “Music of
Holy Week” – conducted by Robert Sabourin, the choir will sing classic hymns
and anthems for Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, and Good Friday. Exultate Deo is made up of professional and semi-professional
singers from the region who share a love of sacred choral repertoire. Nicholas
Schmelter, organist for the program, will play organ voluntaries for each of
the three days of Holy Week.The concert,
the penultimate event of the 2014-2015 Friends
of Music series, is open to the public free of charge. Donations will be
received to provide for future events.

Monday, January 19, 2015

The Friends of Musicof
Saginaw’s historic First Congregational Church, 403 S. Jefferson Avenue,announce the first event of the
winter/spring 2015 series: a concert that will benefit the CAN Council Great
Lakes Bay Region and the congregation’s musical outreach series.Musicians Mike Brush and Julie Mulady will
collaborate in a performance of “The American Songbook” highlighting treasures
of the modern repertoire on Friday, February 6, at 7:00 p.m.

According to Brush, “the lyrics and melodies [will] drive
the unusual and personal song selection.”In Mulady’s intimate or sonorous song renderings along with Brush’s
expressive and supportive accompaniment, the program will offer an ideal
collaboration.

The suggested entrance donation is $20; however, $25 tickets
will guarantee seating and access to a “meet the musicians” reception in the
church’s Bradley House Theatre.Tickets
can be purchased in advance at the church office during normal business
hours.All proceeds from the event will
be split between the CAN Council and First Congregational Church’s Friends of
Music.

Mike Brush is well known throughout the Great Lakes Bay
Region.A keyboardist and vocalist,
Brush has earned a solid reputation as a jazz and blues performer, composer,
and educator. He has devoted his songwriting and arranging talents to personal,
educational, collaborative, and community-centered creative projects. For the
past thirty years he has balanced the demands of teaching music in the Saginaw
Public Schools and performance. Mike was the director of the Voice/Keyboard
Department at the Saginaw Arts and Sciences Academy from 1999-2010. In 1985,
Mike released Exposed, his first
album of original jazz-influenced songs. The album received positive critical
response and local airplay. His songs and ensembles have represented Saginaw’s
diversity, and in recognition of his work with young people, Mike received the
Herman W. Coleman Human Relations Award from the Michigan Education
Association, the All Area Arts Award from Saginaw’s enrichment commission, and
the Unity Award from the Los Angeles Unified School District. These awards were
received in 1997. Brush served as the Grand Marshall of the 1996 Saginaw Pride
Parade and received The Saginaw News'
Crystal Apple Award in 2006.

For the past ten years, Julie Mulady has gained a reputation
as a popular singer and actress in the Saginaw area. Credits include performances
with the Saginaw Choral Society, Saginaw Symphony Orchestra, Saginaw Eddy Band,
and pianist Ralph Furlo. Julie was featured in a January 2004 concert
"Julie Mulady – Broadway and More" at First Presbyterian Church in
Saginaw. Julie has delighted audiences
in productions at the Theater Guild of Midland and Pit and Balcony Theatre.
Julie is an elementary school teacher for the Saginaw Public Schools.

First
Congregational Church is an acoustically-superb building, which dates to 1868,
and is located on the corner of South Jefferson Avenue and Hayden Street in
downtown Saginaw. The congregation, gathered in the 1850s, is now affiliated
with the United Church of Christ, and it has recognized excellence and
eclecticism in its musical offerings since the 1800’s. The church’s first
quartet, formed in 1882, effectively improved the quality of singing in the
church. Over the years, musicians including Duke Ellington and Virgil Fox have
performed in the sacred space.The
church is one of the finest facilities for music and musical outreach in the
region. Music programs for diverse ages and skills are a key congregational
ministry and take place during the normal academic term.

All
outreach and events of the Friends of
Music take place due to the financial support of patrons.These events are not funded by church
operating funds.If you would like more
information about the Friends of Music seriesor if you would like to financially support
the series of events, contact Nicholas Schmelter, Director of Music Ministries,
at the church office center, (989) 754-6565, or visit the blog, http://fcc-musicfriends.blogspot.com/.

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First Congregational Church is one of the finest facilities for music and musical outreach in the region. The sanctuary boasts an organ built by the Ernest M. Skinner Company of Boston (1929) restored and enlarged by Scott Smith Pipe Organs (2014). The chapel houses an unaltered two-manual, nine rank pipe organ, built by the Aeolian-Skinner Organ Company, Inc. (Opus 1327). Among other instruments First Congregational Church houses two Steinway pianos, two harpsichords, six octaves of handbells, and dozens of recorders, percussion instruments, and Orff instruments.